Oh God- those brownies sound incredible! Your workout sounds killer, too!
Went over to the path and wound around the path and some neighborhoods for a total of 9.2 miles, my longest run since January. I mainly stuck pretty well to the low HR, with walking breaks to keep HR down starting at 3 miles. It was very humid and 67 degrees, but cloud cover for a lot of it. Glad to get that done. Drinking a big iced tea now. Walked .3 miles after the run and walked the dogs another .5 miles, so 10 miles for the day getting across Tennessee. My husband is off on a long bike ride. I think he’ll beat the rain.
In a extremely rare moment of early morning enthusiasm, I ran my 5K route and then followed it up with a 2K row, which in the world of CF, is the rough equivalent to a 1-mile run. A far better run today than a couple days ago.
We may drive to the beach later, but I’d still like to get to my late afternoon/evening workout. TBD.
@ClassicMom98, where are you located (asking bc of flooding)?
I have been keeping up with my lightweight goals - an hour of cardio daily, light weights, and a little yoga. Today I rode outside, and did some weeding and some weights.
Tomorrow we may go for a long bike ride. Husband has had some sporadic pain in his chest/arm/shoulder (probably for 2 weeks now - yes I have told him many times that he should call the doc), but can run - 6 miles today- just fine. He was debating a long ride, but after run has decided it will be fine.
Hopefully biking trail will be less crowded than last time if we head out tomorrow.
@ClassicMom98 I TOTALLY missed the short sentence about the bridge. I’m like, “that’s it! I have to tell her it is not ok to run through flooded water!!!”
I ran this morning followed up by some gardening and then a couple hours of power washing which really is not strenuous. I’ll take a couple miles walk tonight after dinner.
Since it is a holiday weekend, I’ll share that I’ll also be eating some cake tonight. We are celebrating my son’s bday (28) and he requested what is called Chocolate Thunder cake. Bake a devils food cake, poke holes in it when cooled, pour sweetened condensed milk over it, then chocolate fudge sauce. (I actually halved the amounts - I mean come on…!) Frost with cool whip (the only time I’ll eat cool whip) and then crush Heath bars on top. I only ate breakfast and some fruit today to prepare for tonight!
@abasket LOL! No. I wouldn’t even run through the river if it was low. I’ve seen schools of snakes swimming by. No thanks! The trail that parallels the river was under water by 10+ feet in some spots. I won’t be running on that for awhile. Once it receded it’ll be buried with sediment and parks & rec I think is still shut down. Maybe not. Crossing fingers.
Believe it or not! This very week marks ONE YEAR since my Rogue squat stand arrived and I switched from dumbbells to barbells.
Here is my report:
I’m very content with how the year went & relieved that I stuck with it. I just don’t like to “work out” – getting hot, sweaty, & exhausted. I’ll hike for hours, but please don’t ask me to run or do CF. So, lucky I found something I’ll actually do that is good for me.
I was surprisingly consistent in my training over the year, and missed few sessions. Those I missed were due to crushing sinus headache, vacation, injury (OMG, that back tweak), and illness. Of course, all of that puts progress in reverse.
I started out training 2x a week, then went to 3x a week, and now I’m on a Four Day Heavy Light Split which I like a lot.
I’ve re-introduced chin-ups, but only once a week instead of twice a week. My elbow tendonitis complains a little, but it isn’t yelling at me. So, maybe NSAIDS after and limiting chins to 1x a week might be the sweet spot? I hope so.
I was 55 yo, 5’ 6", and skinny fat, 130-135# a year ago when I started. (female!)
Squats started at 75# and PR is 167# for a triple.
Deadlifts started at 135# and PR is 220# for a triple.
Bench started at 55# and PR is 103# for a triple.
Press started at 33# (empty bar) and PR is 71# for a triple.
Chin-up PR is 2 sets of 4 unassisted.
I’m 56 yo now, still 5’ 6" I hope, and about 140-145#
I had to go one size up on all my pants (slim cut) because… butt & thighs. I can still fit into all my hiking pants (whew!) but they are tighter than I’m used to.
I’m most surprised by the meat I’ve put on all around my shoulder joint – traps, deltoids, lats, pecs --that is the most noticeable difference to me.
If I could put 30# on all my lifts this upcoming year, I’d be amazed & psyched.
It’s true @Midwest67 you are an inspiration in more ways than one - I’ll also credit was seems to be your “no can’t do” attitude and positive attitude!
Functional fitness today. Carrying bags of MiracleGro around and filling containers and planting. Weeding. ? Some of the horsetails I pulled looked like they came from Jurassic Park!!! Dinner ? earned. ?
@Midwest67, I am really impressed - you’ve done great.
I assume gaining weight and sizes is something you were looking to do/isn’t bothering you?
I exercise to try and keep my size down (would love to lose a couple of inches in various places, but not enough to work extra hard to make it happen) and to stay healthy. I would be freaking out if I had to go up in sizes. (Vanity, for sure).
@Midwest67 - you inspire me too! What a strong (literally) woman you are. And even with the setbacks of illness and injury, you got right back in. Keep going!
3 miles today, the first outside run since the wipe out. Just gradually testing the ankle which so far is not complaining though it swells up at night.
No, I’m not always 100% okay with living in a bigger body. I figure it’s because I’ve been marinated in the culture of skinnier = better for decades, sadly since about 8th grade.
Aesthetics-wise, a year in, I look like someone who strength trains. With my shoulder rack bigger, that helps balance out a bigger butt and thighs. I think I look so much healthier than I did before (I was thin and weak).
I’ve learned SO MUCH from my podcasts on strength training. There was an entire episode devoted to males and females who wanted to get stronger, but could not deal with their bodies getting even a size bigger, completely freaking out about the number on the scale.
It’s not like a non-athlete, no PED-taking, general population lifter (like me) keeps getting bigger exponentially. Genetics has a lot to do with how one’s body responds to strength training, and of course, you can adjust your program for your goals.
Aesthetics aside, for whatever reason I just got stuck on the idea that I needed to put on muscle & bone mass so I could age well. I want to be strong in my last decades, not frail.
My podcasts helped me with the paradigm shift. Focus on what your body can DO. Age well. Get strong. Strength makes everything else better.
Some episodes talk about lifters in their 60s or 70s who got sick or in an accident and having muscle mass on you can make the difference between going home or going to a skilled nursing facility. It can make a difference between surviving and perishing. I had never thought of it that way before. Maybe there’s a downside to skinnier = better?
Lastly, I just feel so much better. More resilient. No longer bothered by a sore back/neck/shoulders when I’m working at the computer or standing for a long time.
I also like that the program I’m on is measurable, so to speak. I’m either making progress (putting more weight on the bar) or not. I’m not focused on aesthetics, and that is better for my mental health.
Barbell training and lifting heavy is definitely different from the dumbbell routine I was doing before. I’ll never forget how HEAVY the bar felt when I first pulled 125# out of the rack to squat it. It’s so scary going down with it and you think there is no way you will be able to stand up again. But you do! Look! You just did a hard thing!
Lastly, for me, as I said before, this is just something I’ll do whereas there are a whole bunch of other things that are great for you, but I’ll never do them. Meeting yourself where you are is so important.
At one time, I was considering hiking more every week. That would be hours and hours of time I just didn’t have to spare. So, bang for the buck? Barbell training has worked out.
Have a great Sunday everyone! Thanks for being here!
What a great post @Midwest67 . Thanks for that. Lots of lessons there.
4.4 miles for me on tired lets. HR crept up and up, but I got it done. Took my sweaty self by my office to check on a couple of things. Nobody saw me, fortunately.
Very inspiring, @Midwest67.
I am getting somewhat stronger but not in such a measurable way. I have made measurable gains on the rowing machine this year, though! And it is so satisfying to have actual, measurable, numbers to look at!
I would like to add more systematic strength training at some point, but I feel like I would want to wait until I could get some good personal training because every time I start adding in some kind of strength training, I end up hurting myself (what I would self-diagnose as golfer’s elbow.)
I’ll take a couple miles walk tonight after dinner.